LiciousTO: Dinner at Thoroughbred

Oh Licious, you've dragged me out of my cozy condo and into the cold in hopes of experiencing a tasty, new menu. To Thoroughbred!

Greeted by low lighting and smiling faces as I entered from the chilly abyss; the abyss being Richmond St at –15C. Happy to be indoors, this place already made me feel cozyagain. Light wood walls and bar with dark wood chairs and bench seating made this a relaxing venue.

Drinky, Drinky. A small, but decent, craft beer menu with both draught and cans available. I was having trouble choosing, so our fabulous server, who was versed in craft beer(bonus points!), brought me a couple samplesto try. I went with Bell City's Peanut Butter Brown Ale. Not sweet, but a nice peanut flavour. Also not overpowering, so it goes well with food. My Chef Aunt said this place has excellent mixologists who come up with some killer cocktails. If cocktails are your jam, you've got to try these.

Food time. To start, she chose the Kung Pow Cauliflower and I had the Roast Squash. The Kung Pow was tasty; a good amount of heat, but it didn't drown out the actual cauliflower or coriander. My Roast Squash was one sexy salad. The tender butternut squash topped with baby spinach, pecans, gorgonzola and topped with a fantastic in-house dressing.

Mains were a tough decision, but I can't so no to Braised Rib. My Aunt ordered the Confit Lamb Shoulder without question. My rib came shrouded in radicchio, topped with peeled orange slices and sat upon a bed of barley risotto. There aren't enough curse words to describe how good it was. The rib fell off the bone, as expected, and did not disappoint. The barley risotto and citrus of the orange were a nice change in flavour and texture; I was entertained by each bite. Chef Aunt was thoroughly enjoying her lamb. I know this because she did not offer me a bite. 😛

The dessert. Oh yes. There's always room for dessert. Since I was on a peanut theme, I had the Peanut Butter Crème Brulee. I also have a thing for brulee. My Aunt was in trying sous vide cheesecake, so the Apple Crumble was her selection. I didn't know what that meant, so she explainedthe cheesecake is placed in a sealed bag and cooked in hot water. Neat! The Apple Crumble was dissected by my Aunt. She said the cheesecake was good, but she found the apple crumble a little sweet. Mybrulee was fab. Sugar layerwas very thin, so stabbing it to death was not required and it didn't stick to my teeth. The custard was creamy and had all the peanut butter flavours I hoped for.

The service was excellent. She was well versed in the menu and I'm sad I didn't get her name. Damnit! All of the food was beautifully plated and so, so good.